Streams of Mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise

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flee from evil

At the pool last weekend there was this little kid who followed Ginny around for almost an hour. You know the type, one of those kids whose mom isn’t playing with them, and they are bored so they glom onto some stranger.

I’d guess the girl was about 4 or maybe 5 at most. Far too young to be allowed to just run amok in the pool for an hour, but I digress…

She was intent on telling secrets. Deep dark stuff that made her giggle to talk about.

“my sister pooped in the bathtub” teeheeeeeeheeeee

I rolled my eyes and said, “that’s gross” and moved away with Ginny to a different section of the pool.

She followed us.

“I pee in the pool all the time” teeheeheeeeeee

Again I looked sternly at her and said “that’s gross.” And we moved away.

She seemed nice enough. She didn’t splash or push and I would gladly have let Ginny play with the child, but I feared the evil influence of her conversation. Not only was I grossed out, but I didn’t want my impressionable child to think that this is funny or get the idea that she should emulate the behaviors being described.

As it turns out, I had no need to worry. Not only did my well trained girl-child let me know *in a whisper* when she needed to go, but the next time Ginny spotted that little girl making her way towards us she turned around and said “I’ve changed my mind, let’s go this way” and she swam away as fast as her little dog-paddle stroke could take her.

I’m so proud.

and humbled. Because that is exactly how I am supposed to treat the evil influences in my own life. Look it straight in the eye, recognize it for what it is….and run the other way.

The most profound things God ever does in our lives are never convenient. Sometimes God wants us to fight for what He has a mind to give us. Remember, He gave Joshua and the Israelites the Promised Land then told them to go in there and fight for their place in it. Sometimes we have to fight traffic and drive around the church seven times to get to some Promise Land. (Beth Moore)